A few years ago, Shania Twain wasn’t sure if she’d ever find her voice again.
Open-throat surgery to repair her damaged vocal cords – a long-gestating result of Lyme disease she contracted in 2003 – was frightening, but necessary.
Now, the comely country-pop superstar has returned with confidence and vigor as she celebrates the release of “Queen of Me” – her first album in six years – and readies the Friday launch of her seven-month tour bearing the same name.
It’s her first tour in five years, and she’s “doing great vocally,” she says from Las Vegas, where she lives, played two successful residencies (2012 and 2019) and also spent the past month rehearsing for her impending dash around the world. “I feel like my voice is back. It’s different, but it’s strong.”
Pre-singing warmups “to get the larynx in the right position” and warm downs are mandatory, and she’s prepared to tackle a set list of more than 20 songs, including a medley of some rare fan favorites.“I’m not not going to do the classics, but I won’t be doing all of them. Since I did the Vegas residencies (of hits), I’ll give some of those a rest and am doing this medley of songs I might not have done on stage before and I know people love them,” she says
Twain, who was bestowed with the Equal Play Award at the recent CMT Awards, also continues to advocate for female artists and is resolute that she will continue to “straddle the line” between country and pop music and “carry on being myself.”
Women have made progress, but not in country music
In the three decades since her self-titled debut, country music has regressed in bolstering female singers, Twain feels.
“They’re not as inclusive as they were,” she says. “It’s a mystery as to why. I would change it if I could, but all I can do is support the awareness. I’m glad I’m not a new artist starting out in country as a female. It’s a hard enough road as it is.”
Twain, who is providing a platform for Kelsea Ballerini, Lindsay Ell, Mickey Guyton and other female openers on her tour, points to a CMT study from 2020 that indicated more than 80% of country music listeners want to hear more songs from women. But she, like most, is baffled about the stagnant status.
“I don’t know why it’s happening, but I notice it and miss it myself as a listener,” she says.
